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ADDEESS 



AT THE INAUGURATION OF THE 



HATBOROUGH MONUMENT, 



coMMJsMoaArjNe tbk 



BATTLE OF THE CROOKED B 



FT 



DELIVERED IN LOM.EK ACADEMY, 



Decern. Ijei- 5, 1861. 



BYE \l V . JACOB B E L Y T L L E . 



PUBLISHED BY ORDER OF THE MONUMENTAL ASSOCIATION 



DOYLESTOWN, PA 



W. W. H. DAVIS, PRINTER. 
1862. 



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ADDRESS 

mi'' 
DEIIVEEED AT THE INAUGURATION OF THE HATBOROUGH MONUMENT, 



COMMEMOEATIJia THE 

BATTLE OP THE CROOKED BILLET, 

BY REV. JACOB BELVILLE. 



A LITTLE more than a year ago, you were assembled to witness the inaugu- 
ration of the Hatboro' Monumental Association. To-day, you assembled to 
■witness the completion of the work, for which that association was organized. 
And now, to me has been given the honor of announcing to you that that 
work is done. It is well done ; — in a manner worthy of this community 
worthy of the association, and worthy of the events which that work is 
designed to commemorate. 

Another monument has been erected to departed worth. Another spot 
has been consecrated to the memory of precious dust and priceless souls. 
Another stone has been set up, to witness that good deeds cannot die. 
Another tribute has been paid to that virtue which men in every age have 
ranked next to the love of God, — the love of Country. Another record has 
been written in enduring marble, to plead with silent eloquence, for the 
perpetuation of that government for whose establishment our fathers bled 
and to command our children and our children's children, that they hand 
down to their children that heritage our fathers gave us, and which, by the 
grace of God* we intend to hand down unimpaired to them. 

It is not my province to-day, to search the field of history and portray 
before you the events which your monument is designed to commemorate. 
Those events have already been recorded by an abler pen* than mine, and 
a more eloquent tonguef than mine has rehearsed them in your ears ; and 

* History of Battle of Crooked Billet, by Colonel W. W. H. Davia. 
t Oration by Colonel J. W. Torney, July 4, 1860. 



as the result of that record and rehearsal, those e?ents are familiar t3 you 
all as housshold words. As you have gathered together here to-day. the 
hattle of ihe Crooked Billet has been in imagination fought again. Toa 
have seen that little band of undisciplined yet patriotic men, with Lacey at 
their head, by the faithlessness of sentinels, and the treachery of their own 
countrymen, surprised at morning dawn by more than thrice their number 
of veteran troops. You have seen the enemy closing in upon them, from 
right and left and rear and front — you have seen Downey, and Thompson, 
and Pinyard fall — you have seen Lacey with more than half his force break 
through the oppos-ing foe, and make good his retreat ; and. when your eye 
has followed them for a moment to a place of security, you have returned to 
look ou scenes of cruelty, over which even the charity of an enemy would 
fain throw the mantle of oblivion. 

It is mine, to day. rather to read to you again the les.sons your fathers 
wrote upon these fields with their blood; — to gather, from the breezes that 
pliy around this consecrated spot, the warnings and counsels that have been 
floating in them ever since they were breathed upon them by the spirits that 
departed here in the struggle for liberty. It is mine, to strike the key note 
of the monument, to interpret its history and its inscriptions, that it may at 
once begin its holy mission, by awaking the impulses of patriotism in our 
lieartj". 

This monument is a tribute of gratitude, a witness that good deeds cannot 
die. The D.ird of Avon said, "the evil that men do, lives after them, the 
good is ofi interred with their bones." It is not true; — evil and good are 
alike imriiortal. Tlrere are gwod de^ds which so enwrap nmcli thai i'S evil, 
that the eye of man never beholds it, and there are evil deeds which cover 
a character with a dye of infamy -aa d^eep. that an pterniiy of goodness could 
not wa^h it out. The preduininant good 9r«yil,: in an individual, a nation, 
a geneiation, stamps its character for ever. - ^ , 

Good deeds live in the memory. EgUty three years, h.ave passed since 
the events occurred which we this d;iy cointLeniorate. Their memory is as 
green to day, as when those years began, and in view of subsequent events, 
they have a.ssuraed a tnagnitude they did not then possess. 

Good deeds not only live in memory — they are immortal in, tjieir influence 
—they are like seeds wliich spring up, a leaf, a twig, a tree^. which every 
year spreads wider its branches and bears in richer luxuri^nae its fruits. 
The ouiburs of p.atriotism to day, throughout our land, is.t,hg ripe clusters 
from the vine our fathers planted and watered with their blood. The 
patriots, to whose memory your monument is reared, are doing more for 
their country to-day thai when they died. The blood they shed upon these 
fii.lis is more powerful to preserve our liberty, than it was io* procure it. It 
nerves our spirits to endurance in the nation's holy cause, and ministers a 
witliering rebuke to every cold heart and hesitating hand. 

But I have said that evil is immortal, no less than good. And there are 
evil deeds remembered here to-day. The men of the Revolution were not 
all patriots. The very service to which Lacey with his band was appointed, 
testifies that there were traitors then. He was appointed to protect his 
country from his countrymen, to prevent the citizens of America from B\xp- 



plying to England's hired army the strength which was to be (spent la 
laying waste her cities, desolating her fields, and polluting her homes with 
blood. And yet, I confess, fellow ciiizens, that I have always looked upon 
many of the Tories of the Revolution with mu2h of pity, and on many of 
their deeds of service to the mother country with somewhat of extenuation.^ 
Though they were traitors to theircouuiry, they were loyal to the government 
under which they had been born — ihey resisted a government which was 
then a new experiment. Still, they will be remembered and execrated as 
traitors, while a single monument shall stand to tell of the struggles of the 
Revoluiion. Who then shall pliy the traitors of our day? AVho shall ex- 
teuiuite their treason ? They need no monument to perpetuate their disgrace. 
The men of America who look on with cold iuditference upon the struggle in 
which we are now engaged, wiio are not ready to lay their all upon their 
country's altar in this her time of peril, are writing the history of their own 
shame as with an iron pen — they are handing down to their children a 
heritage of infamy. Their children's children will abjure their names. 

Your monument is a trilute to pnlriotism, a virtue which, as I have already 
said, has, in the e''ieem of the good of every age, ranked second only to the 
love of God. Who are the men whose names are handed down to us in 
sacred history encircled with a God given glory ? Who were Moses and 
Joshua, Deborah and Gideon, Samsou and Samuel, David and Jelioshaphat 
and Ilezekiah and Josiah ? Who, but patriots, who loved their God and 
loved their country. Their patriotism and their piety stand side by side 
upon the sacred page. They served their counti-y in serving God, and 
they served God in serving their country. And almost every record of their 
faith in God, is also a record of some brave and nohie deed for the land they 
loved. When they prayed, it was for grace and strength to serve their 
country; and then, gifted by Jeiiovah with a self sacrificing patrioli.«m, 
they counted nothing too dear to sacrifice upon the altar of their country 
and their God. 

The school boys here will well remember the story of Voliimnia. the mother 
of Caius MarciusCoriolanus. An exile from Rome, Caius Marcius had joined 
the Volscians. He was appointed commander of their forces, and now 
flushed with victory after victory he was at the head of a powerful army 
almost at the gates of Rome. Deputation after depuiation went forth from 
the city. Senators, Pontiffs, Flamens, Augurs, all went forth to intercede 
with Coriolanus to spiire the city, but all in vain. The women, true to the 
iustiucis of that piety which in every ago has chaiacteriz d their sex, were 
gathered in die temple to pray. At length Volurnnia rose up, and with her 
Valeria, the wife of Coriolanus, and her children, and went forth to his camp 
to intercede for Rome. He saw them approaching, knew them, and resolved 
to steel his heart against their entreaties too. But he loved his mother 
better than his country, and as she drew near he rose to greet her with a 
kiss. Though she was his mother, she shrank from the pollution of a trait- 
or's kiss. "Art thou Caius Marcius," said she, "and am I thy mother, or 
art thou the leader of the Volscians and am I thy foe ? ^'Answer me this, 
before thou kiasest me." "Shall it be said that it is to me — to me alone — that 
Kom* ov«« her conqueror and oppressov Had I never ieen a mother, my 



counL/y had utill been free." No wonder that Caius Marcius quailed before 
the bursting patriotism of that noble mother's heart. No wonder that he 
cried, "Oh, my mother, thou hast saved thy country, but lost thy son." No 
•wonder that he went back to the Volscians and died the victim of his double 
treason. Her's was a genuine patriotism that looked on every earthly tie as 
nothing when compared with that which bound her to her country, that 
overshadowed even the instincts of a mother's love. This is the patriotism 
that has commanded the reverence of true men in every age. This makes 
us bow before the hero of Fort Sumpter. He sacrificed the ties of family 
to serve his countrj'. This invests with a peculiar interest the services of 
Fairfax, in the capture of those arch-rebels from the deck of the Trent. He 
is a Virginian, bound to the enemies of his country by the ties of blood, but 
bound to that country by stronger ties, by all the noble impulses of his 
patriotic heart. This is true patriotism ; it rises above all considerations of 
interest ; it tramples on the dictatesof ambition ; it turns a deaf ear to the 
voice of friends and kindred. It counts noi^ilabor a toil, no endurance a 
suffering, no loss a sacrifice, if the country be but thereby served. It knows 
no limit, but the law of God ; and there it alwaj-^s finds a refuge, for God is 
the patriot's God. 

But wherefore should a luan love his country ? I might tell you that it 
is the residence and the guardian of all his dearest interests ; that it is the 
protection which government affords which preserves not only our liberties, 
but our homes and our altars ; that without it the domestic circle would soon 
lose its charm, and the temples of religion would be razed to the ground ; 
that rapine and violence would soon make a hell of earth. But true patri- 
otism rests upon a foundation deeper far than any considerations of interest 
or advantage. I am weary of that mathematical philosophy which would 
calculate love to country and love to God by the pennyweight ; it would sell 
God and tlie country for a very few pieces of silver. True patriotism has 
its foundation in the God-like nature which the Creator first gave to man. 
Why does every true man love his country? Why does the eye, not blinded 
by disease, love beauty ? Because it is its nature. Why does the ear that 
is not deaf, delight in melody? Because God made it so. Even so the man 
that is a man, in whom sin has not utterly obliterated every element of his 
moral nature, loves his country, because God made him so. It is the 
necessary requirement of the primary instincts of his soul. 

The men to whom this monument is reared, vsere patriots. They did not 
achieve, it is true, what the world calls great deeds, deeds which at once 
would write their names upon the roll of fame. But they did the greatest 
deed man can do for his country, they died in its defence. They stood in 
their lot, between their country and her foes. They fought until they fell 
the victims of treachery and violence, all that the bravest and the best could 
do. It is sometimes said that circumstances make great men. It is true, 
but they must have the material and the time. The Revolution would never 
have made a Washington, if it had not had a Washington to make him of. 
Nor yet would the world have ever known the AVashington it does, had not 
God granted a long life for the developm.ent of his greatness. They say, the 
woi'ld has seen but one Washington. But one was spared, 'tjs true, but 



many an embrj'O WasLington lunj Lave yielded up bis life on the fields of 
the Revolution. There may have been a Washington in patriotism, in 
courage, in every element of greatness, among that little band, to whose 
memory you have erected your monument today. Many a Washington may 
be doing duty in the r;inks to-day — some may already have gone to their 
long home in the struggle in -which we are now engaged, whose names will 
never be known to fame. Let your monuments ever be reared, not so much 
to great deeds as to brave and loyal hearts, that, in the holy atmosphere 
that surrounds them, your children may breathe the inspiration of true 
patriotism, and before them swear eternal fidelity to their country, if not 
eternal hatred to its foes. 

But I have said, the monument is a plea for the Republic. I confess I 
blush with shame to utter words like these — a plea for such a government 
as ours ? When I preach the gospel there is one service which always 
mantles my cheek with shame — to plead with man to love his God — with 
such poor worms as we to love a being such as the great and good Jehovah. 
Even so, with reverence I say it, I blush to plead with the citizens of 
America, with men who know what it cost to establish this government, 
who have experienced its beneficence and know something of its value, to 
plead with such to preserve and not destroy it. 

In the original draught of Washington's Farewell Address, now in the 
possession of James Lenox, of New York, is this paragraph, which does 
not appear in the printed copies : 

" Besides the more seriou's causes already hinted as threatening the 
existence of our Union, there is one less dangerous, but sufficiently 
dangerous to make it prudent to bs upon our guard against it. I allude 
to the petulance of party differences of opinion. It is not uncommon to 
hear the irritations which these excite, vent themselves in declarations that 
the different parts of the United States are ill-affected to each other, in 
menaces that the Union will be dissolved by this or that measure. Intima- 
tions like these are as indiscreet as they are intemperate. Though 
frequently made with levity and without any really evil intention, they 
have a tendency to produce the consequence which they indicate. They 
teach the minds of men to consider the Union as precarious ; as an object 
to wliich they ought not to attach their hopes and fortunes, and thus chill 
the sentiment in its favor. By alarming the pride of those to whom they 
are addressed, they set ingenuity at work to depreciate the value of the 
thing, and to discover reasons of indifference towards it. This is not wise, 
rt will be much wiser to habituate ourselves to reverence the Union as the 
palladium of our national happiness ; to accommodate constantly our words 
and actions to tha,t idea, and to discountenance whatever may suggest a 
suspicion that it can in any event be abandoned." 

Opposite this paragraph on the margin these words are written in IVasli- 
ington's own hand — "Not important enough." He would not insult the 
true men of his day by warning them further than he had already done, 
against a thought entertained only by the lowest demagogues. He little 
thought that in our day a mighty host would be gathered on the soil of his 
own Virginia, some bearing his own honored name, to destroy that govern- 



inent fo the establishment of which he consecrated hiS life. He little 
thought that, within sight of his own grave, a youthful warrior, burning 
with the fire of his own patriotic spirit, would be ruthlessly murdered for 
flinging ti> the breeze his country's flag. He little thought that ere the men 
of Ills day were in their graves, the work of his life would be the tiockery 
of madmen, the plaything of fools. And yet though to day there still 
stands before you one who was bora in the midst of the perils of the Revo- 
lution, wedded in youth to the daugtiter of him who led the little bund to 
whose memory you have erected your monument,* already six hundred 
thousand men are under arms at the call or this government to protect it 
from the assaults of those who have lived in peace under its protection and 
have grown many and mighty under its fostering care. And wherefore this 
deadly assault on this most beaeficeut government ? — this government 
which has cherished all its citizens of every seciinn and of every class, as 
no other government ever did on earth ? — tliis government under which 
science aid the arts, literature ami religion alike hive flourislu>d, which, 
in the ordinary and naruval working of its plans, bestows rn every cilizea 
ftlike honors and rewards which pale the liglit of the titles and honors 
which kings dispense to a favored few ? — this government against which 
even the mad malice of rebellion dare not utter aught of evil but misgiv- 
ings for tjie future ? Alas ! my fellow citizens, the prediction which W ash- 
iugton dared not to breathe is fulfilled. A multitude, of those who have 
inherited the fruits of his self sacrificing life have sunk to a depth of 
infnniy, his noble na'ure could not sound. "The petulance of party 
differences of opinion," has done its work. The ballot-box, in the legiii- 
n ate exercise of its constitutional functions, has dethroned one party and 
enthroned another. And under what plea doe*' this iniquitous rebellion 
marshal its hosts ? Because of fears, well-founded fears, that the powers 
of this Government, under its present administration, will not be prostituted 
to tiie extension and perpeiuati,)u of slavery, an institution, which has ever 
been regarded by the civilized and Ciiristian world as a dark blot upon the 
record of our fame ; an institution of which Washington himself ihus wrote 
in language worthy of himsi^lf and worthy of his struggles in the cause of 
human freedom : — "I never mean, unless some particular circu-i'Stances 
compel me to il, lo possess another slave by purchase, it being among my 
first wishes to see some plan adopted by which slavery, in this country, 
may be abolished by law." "T wish from my soul that the Legislature of 
this State (Virginia) could see tho policy of a gradual abolition of 
slavory." To perpetuate and extend this institution, to nationalize it and 
make " owned'' labor the great characteristic of the Government is the 
great aim of those who, to accomplish these humiliating ends, have banded 
to destroy a government whose tendencies have ever been to universal 
freedom. We wage no war on slavery. In constitutional rights were 
secured by the solemn oath of one who never broke liis oath. It wages 
war on us and oii our Government to obtain guarantees for the future 
■which were never given by any Constitution under Heaven — security for 

• i)r. DariiaiftoB, of West Chester, whe married th« asnght«r of S»E8ral Lac»y, wa» preMnI 

« tli» rrsMsen f the 5isaa!~»at. 



the perpetuity of its tyranny. Thia must be granted or the Republic ehall 
fall — so rebellion has decreed. And was it for this God op ned in thia 
■wes ern world a refuge for the oppressed of every land? — was it for this 
that Liberty raised here her standard, and fought and won the battles of 
the Revolution, that here might be established a nursery of slavery ? — that 
Religion might sanctify the tyrant's chains and baptize them aa a holy 
thing ? — that we and our children might throw back into our fathers' teeth 
their own declaration, that "all men were created free and equal"? — and 
have we grown so great that we can afford to take from under us our very 
foundations? On the contrary, this land belongs to Liberty. The spirit of 
Liberty first settled it, the spirit of Liberty rescued it through seas of blood 
from the rule of kings. If the Republic fall, I will not say that Liberty 
must fall. No! Liberty is of God, and it will live to wave its banner over 
every tyrant's grave ; but if this Republic fall, then exiled Liberty onoe 
more must seek another home, peihaps on Africa's long neglected soil. 

But it must not fall. The monument you have erected to-day ia 
another plea for its perpetuity. It points you back to the wild woods, 
and humble, scattered dwellings, by which this spot was surrounded in 
revolutionary limes, and then as it surveys the cultivated fields, the cheerful 
homes and smiling villages, which now surround it, it tells of the beneficence 
of that government which under God has been the author of this prosperity 
not only here but in every portion of this mighty land. 

The history which ii hands down reminds us that this free government 
was bought with blood, and fires us all with devotion to resolve, — it shall 
never be iold for less. 

But you need no monument to plead with you. I see, before me, men of 
every party, Republicans, and Democrats alike ; — adherents of him who 
passed from earth, with patriotic warnings and counsels on his dying lips, 
amid the Erst bursting of the storm, and those who once were adherents of 
him who, now a despicable traitor, dishonors one of Kentucky's noblest 
names. You know no party now, but the party of your country. You ar« 
Americans all — animated by one spirit, the spirit thus breathed by our own 
poet : 

" Our Country calls, away, aw.ay. 

To where the blood-stream blots the green, 
Strike to defeud the mildest sway 

That time in all her course has seea ; 
See, from a thousand coverts, see 

Spring the armed f les that haunt her track i 
They aim to strike her down, and we 

Must beat the banded traitors back. 
Few. few were they whose swords, of old, 

Won the fair land in which we dwell, 
But we are many, we who hold 

The firm resolve to guard it well. 
Strike for this broad and happy land 

Blow after blow, till men shall se» 
That might and right go hand in hand. 

And glorious must their triumph ba." 

The decree has gone forth — ''the Union shall bo preserved." A solemn 
oath has been breathed before the great Jehovah, and His blessing sought 
in faith and obedience upon it. They tell us that our foes have asked God's 
blasting 4k;,. end that they pray with faith, but it i« a faith not honorsd by 



obedience. They trust in vain Jehovah's promise, who defy His law. But 
we have sought His blessing in the maintenance of right. Fathers, sons, 
husbands, brothers, are already in the field, ready to win the patriot's 
reward, victory or an honored grave. And we are left, all ready to obey, 
whenever our country calls. If we are true to ourselves, our cause, and 
our God, we cannot fail. God never laid such broad and deep foundations, 
as He has laid in this fair land, merely to amuse the universe with their 
destruction. Surely God has not given man the cup of liberty, that, just as 
he begins to drink, He may dash it in derision from hi.s lips. God is no triflor, 
nor yet is He the advocate of wrong. He is not the patron of falsehood and 
robbery and treason and rebellion. If our cause fail it will not be because 
it is not just, nor because it has not the Divine blessing. It will be because 
we are recreant to our trust, because we lack the virtue for the service to 
which God has called us. Their's was a noble service who purchased the 
liberty we have for eighty-five years enjoyed. What tributes of gratitude 
and praise have since gone up to heaven for their mighty deeds. On what 
scenes of gladness, the fruits of their brave deeds, have their departed 
spirits looked duwu and smiled. Our's is a nobler service still. Their's was 
the ship upon the stocks — our's is the ship at sea, laden with a precious 
freight. They guarded the littlu seed — we the tree laden with blossoms, 
just ready to produce abundant fruit. We bear into the strife the interests 
of thirty millions of people in our own land, the iuterests of the down-trod- 
den and oppressed of every land, the interests of posterity, the interests 
of liberty, of education, of religion throughout the world. Our's is a 
solemn work. Let us perform it in a solemn. God-fearing spirit. If Ave 
are faithful, what glorious rewards await us. What blessings will descend 
upon posterity, what thanksgivings will ascend to God for our service when 
we are in our graves. If we are faithless, we shall entail a curse upon the 
world and our memory shall be accursed. If we are faithless, then let the 
world never know that we have lived. Let the monuments which tell of the 
great deeds of our fathers be destroyed. Let Bunker Hill and Lexington 
and Concord and Trenton and Saratoga and Yorktown be forever forgotten 
Let the monument we have reared to-day be razed to its foundation. Let 
it not stand a monument to our shame, to tell to coming generations that 
we were too weak to keep what our fathers entrusted to our hands Let 
oblivion engulph us all. Let not our memory be preserved, like that o f 
Israel of old, as a warning of the fate of those who forsake God and perish 



APPENDIX. 



Thursda)', the 5th of December, 1861, was the day fixed upon for inaugii* 
fating the "Crooked Billet." Monument, at Hatborough, Montgomery county, 
in commtmoration of those who fell at the Battle of the Crooked Billet, May 
1st, 1778, and who were cruelly massacred by the British troops and Toiies, 
led on by the Tories of the Revolution, residing in tlie viciniiy. Tlie dty 
was most auspicious, calm and beautiful, the sun rendering it mild by his 
warm rays. The inaugural ceremonies were conducted at tlie base of the 
monument, in the forenoon, and as soon as the faolumn was c;ipped, and the 
urn being raised to its position, Rav. Dr. Stselb was calk-d upon and 
addressed the Throne of Grace in a solemn prayer. Several pati-iaiic and 
eloquent addresses were made by gentlemen, who were present by invitation 
of the Managers. The venerable and highly esteem d Dr. W.m. Darli.vgto:: 
celebrated for his scientific, historical, and literary attainmins, an 1 wlio is 
now in his eightieth year, but whose intellect is as vigorous, active, and 
bright as in his younger days, was present, and his lively conversation lent 
a charm and gave additional interest to the occasion. He was accompanied 
by two young ladies, direct descendants of Goneral Lacey. Tlie motuiment 
i? beautiful, large and imposing, and stands upon a high bank overlooking 
the road. It consists of a plinth, five feet square and one foot thick, and a 
double base, all of Montgomery county marble; upon this rests a die, 
enriched with a projecting moulding, on wliich is the Latin motto, ••Dcfensores 
Liberiacis p"r Iiisidias AbrnpU;" on the square below is engi-aved the inscrip- 
tion ; above this is another die, bearing the coat ofarmsof the "OldKeysione 
State," ia alto relievo ; this is exquisitely beautiful and an adtnirably exe- 
cuted piece of workmanship — the horses are well proportioned and seem 
instinct with life, the head of the eagle has a beautiful curve, and all the 
parts are well worked out; rising from this second die is a well proportioned 
shaft or obelisk, nine feet high, on which is sculptured full sized cross- 
swords and a shield, in bold relief; upon the obelisk is a neat capitol, and 
the whole is surmounted with an urn, from which issues a fl ima. It stands 
some twenty-four feet high and is of the finest Italian marble from the baso 
up. The monument will be surrounded by a wall and an iron railin|f. 



10 
INSCRIPTION ON THE MONUMENT. 



Defensores L.ibertafis per Insldias Abrupt!. 

[Xh© Defenders of Liberty slala by gurprise.J 
ON THE WEST FRONT. 

CROOKED BILLET BATTLE, MAY 1, 1778. 

GENERAL JOHN LACEY, 

commaQding the American patriots who were here engaged in conflict 

FOR INDEPENDENCE. 

EOrTH SIDB. 

The Patriots of 1776 

ACHIEVED OUR INDEPENDENCE. 

Their Successor^ 

JESTABLISHED IT IN 1812. 

AYe are now struggling 

FOR ITS PERPETUATION I^J 1861. 

"The Union must and shall be Fraerved." 

EAST SIDE. 

A GRATEFUL TKIBCTB 

by the 

HATBOROUGII MONUMENT ASSOCIATION, 

eiLifilERED AND EREOiei) 

A. D. 1861. 

KOEXn SIDE. 
tX MXMOET OF PATUOTIO 

JOHN DOWNEY', 
And others who were cruelly slain on this ground, in the struggle for 

AMEEICAN LIBERTY. 



Dr. William Darlikgtos, of West Chester, a son-in-law of General Lacey, 
being present and called upon, addressed the audience briefly, thanking 
the people of the neighborhood for the patriotistn they had shown by the 
erection of a beautiful monument, and said it was chiefly owing to the energy 
of the gallant Colonel of the 10-lih Ringgold Regiment,* Pennsylvania Volun- 
teers, and his friends, that this enterprise, which we had been called upon 
to-day to consumiiate, had been commenced. 

General John Davis replied that he could not permit it to go forth, that 
bis family were the only ones prominent in this movement, that where all 
had acted so nobly all should share the praise — that to the ladies of Hat- 
borough and vicinity they were principally indebted; it was to them, who had 
labored so assiduously and earnestly in this good work, that the managers 
were enabled to complete the enterprise. 



* C j1. "VT, W. H. Dar^S; who was tho pi-inie moveT in th« entGrjirlse t« raise thFa moinnnont. 



11 

The Eev. Mr. Tolaicd, of Chestaut Iliil, was prsssnt and added his tesii- 
raony in favor of what had been done by the patriotic sons of patriotic sires, 
to perpetuate the memory of the gallant brave who had given up their lives 
on that sacred spot. Ite iffas glad to see before him the veterans of the war 
of 1812; Dr. Darlington, a Major, aud Gen. John Davis, a Captain of that 
war; they were connecting links that bind the past with the present, that 
unite the patriotism of 1812 and 1861, the defenders of Libertr against 
foreign aggression, and the protectors of that liberty against a wicked and 
causeless rebellion. The olden scenes of 1776 were being enacted over 
again by those brave spirits who have obeyed their country's call and 
are now at the seat of war. Those who had professed to be our brethren 
were now in open rebellion against us, and attempting to overthrow the 
Constitution and the Government. 

Rev. Mr. Hand was also glad to add his testimony to what had already 
been said. He congratulated the community upon what had been accom- 
plished. This was a fitting and beautiful testimonial to the brave men, -rtrho 
in the dark days of the Revolution had risked their all, and some had even 
given up their livfs upon that field to secure our liberties. The events of 
this day were encouraging to those Vtho were now in the service of their 
country. Tliey had gone forth upon a sense of dutv to crush this spirit of 
rebellion, and a grateful people would reward them. Those who fell upon 
this spot little thought they would have their names handed down to pos- 
teidty and their deeds live in imperisable marble; over eighty years have 
passed awaj' and they are not forgotten. 



It may not, perhaps, be out of plac^-, here, to add the following summary 
of General Lacey's personal history : 

John Lacet, Jr., son of John and Jane Lacey, was born in Bucks oounty, 
Pennsylvania, on the 4ih day of February, 1755. His great grandfather, 
William Lacey, was among the earliest settlers under William Penn, and 
omigrated from the Isle of Wight, England. His family were plain Quakers ; 
and the subject of these notes was educated among the straightest of the 
sect. But when the clouds were gathering, whicli portended tlie storm of 
the E,evolution, young Lacey promptly took position in the ranks of the 
patriots, and was chosen "Stdndard Bearer'' in the Second Battalion of the 
Bucks County Militia. Before he reached the age of 21 years, he received 
from the Continental Congress a cetamission as 

"Captain in the 4th Battalion of Pennsylvania Troops, in the Army of 
the United Colonies, raised for the defense of American Liberty, and for 
repelling every hostile iuvasioa thereof. Signed by order of Congress. 

" John Hancock, President. 
" Attest, Ckas. Thomson, Secretary. 

"Philadelphia, January 5tb, 1776." 

This 4th Battalion (or Regiment) was commanded by Colonel Anthonit 
WATNJi, of Chester county. Captain Lacey's company, in the ensuing spring, 
was marched, with the Regiment, to the Canada frontier, where he remained 
on duly with it until the close of the campaign ; when, in consequence of a 
misunderstanding with (he Colonel, he resigned his commission. So far, 
however, was the Captain from leaving the service, he was soon appointed 



12 

\:y 'oti'j FennsyiTunia Legislature, owe ot tie suli-Lieutennnts of Bucks county, 
vriih fliG rank of Lieutenant Colonel; and v.'iis actively einplojed in organiz- 
ing the Militia of tlie county. 

In the aulumu of 1777, when the British had got possession of Philadelphit», 
they sent a strong foragine; party to tlie wert side of the Schuylkill, where 
the Americana were posted, near the Gulf Mills. Lieutenant Colonel Lacey 
was there in command of a regitnent, when a severe engagement took place. 
A portion of the Miliiia acquitted themselves with credit. General Potter, 
who was in cooimand, speaking of the affair, said : — " My people behaved 
well; espepially those regiinenis commanded by the Colonels Chambers, 
Murray, and Lacey. His Excellency (Washington) returned ua thanks in 
General Orders." 

On the 7ih of January, 3778, the Council met at Lancaster, and ordered 
that Colonel Lucey take the command of the Militia of this State, which may 
be stationed between the Scliuylkill and Delaware, until further orders. 

Two days afterward, Pres^ideut Wharton wrote as follows: 

" L.\NCASTEK. January 9, 1778. 

Sir, — You are this day appointed to be a Brigadier General of this State ; 
and the Secretary will, by Colonel Hart, forward to you a commission, 
empowering you to act as such. 

"To Brigadier General L.^cet, at Camp." 

At this dnte, thejuvenile Brigadier — appointed to relieve General Potter 
—was not quite 2'i years of age! His duty was, to cut off supplies, and 
prevent all illicit inlei'cour.se betv/eeii the disaft'cct d country people and the 
enemy in the city. The British officers denounced vengeance on the troops 
tiius einploycl. and swore thpy would speedily have the young General in 
their possession, dead or alive. General Lacey had a most arduous and 
ungracious duty to perform, among his Tory neighbors, and old acquaint- 
ances, — some of whom never forgave h-m ; but he acquitted laimself vigor- 
ously — with a fluctuating force, continually varying from some 40 or 50, to 
about 500 men, — until the unfortunate surprise of his camp, at the Crooked 
Billet, on the morning of the Ist of Jl.iy, 1778. In the beginning of June, 
following. General Lacey whs relieved of his anxious charge, by tlie return 
of General Potter to the command of the district; and in a few days there- 
after the Briii.sh army vacated Phibidelpliia. 

General Lacey, nevertheles'^. continued to serve as a Brigadier of Militia, 
until near llie close of the Pwevoluiionary contest; and his Brigade was 
repeatedly called out, by threatening events. While in this command (viz : 
in January, 1781), he married Miss Axastasia, daughter of Colonel Thomas 
Keynolws, of NdW Jersey, — a gentleman descended from an Irish family, 
in Dublin ; and soon afterward he engaged extens'vely in iron works, on 
the Raiicocus creek, at the villnge known as the New Mills, (now Pemberton.) 
in the county of Biirlington. In this pursuit, — nnd occasionally in public 
life, as a IMagisfvatc and Le;rislitor. — General Lacey continued until bis 
decease, on the 17ili of February, 181-1, aged 59 years. 

General Lacey, at his death, left four children, — three daugbtera and one 
son : — 

Ilia eWo't dinditer ^^•13 m^rrieJ to 'Wniiam L. Smitli. of Eurlinccton county. N.J. 

His sec mil ilaiv4it>T " '• " Dr. ^Villiam D.arlinston. of West Chester Pa. 

His youngest d;iughtor " " .Tonatlian llmgh. of Bnrlinston county. N. .T. 

His "son. Tlioni:^3 II. Lacey — tho only survivor — ro-irles at 3Ioaut lloUy. Burlington co.. N. .T. 

His descendants are not numerous ; but they have been privileged to see 
the rise of a great and magnificent Republic. — as well as to witness the 
outbreak of the most wanton and wicked rebellion that the world ever saw. 
They have mostly inherited the loyal spirit of their ancestor, — nnd some of 
them are now engaged as oiScers in the great Volunteer army, devoted to the 
defence of the Governrnt-nt, which their grand-sire aided to establish. 

ESTO rHREEr^Al 



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